Proposed Paris Mountain condos move to next approval step

Request moves on to County Council committee

UPDATED 5:56 AM EDT Mar 28, 2013

GREENVILLE, S.C. -

A controversial rezoning request that would put upscale condos on Paris Mountain moved forward in the approval process after the Greenville County Planning Commission passed on a decision Wednesday afternoon.

The zoning staff did deny the request but the planning commission declined to recommend denying or granting the zoning request.

Instead, the request will now go before the council's planning development board on for a public hearing on April 1.

Greenfields Consortium LLC, requested Greenville County to rezone 1240 Altamont Road in Greenville. It is currently zoned as an Environmentally Sensitive District, but the company and local developer, Eric Kaufmann, want it to be rezoned as a Flexible Review District. The change, Kaufmann said, would make way for "Altera," his proposed five-story building that would include condominiums on top of the mountain.

Kaufmann, who owns the 48-acre property, originally planned a 74-home development on the land, but has since revised the plan to utilize five acres to build what he calls a "Biltmore-style" building that would include 74 high-end condos and penthouses. The grounds would feature a lake with a boathouse, a wellness center, an indoor pool, an indoor theater, underground parking, a grotto, a barn, a wine cellar and meeting spaces.

An opposition group, called Friends of Paris Mountain State Park, sent out a notice in the weeks before the public hearing that said the project "as presently proposed is out of scale for the surrounding community and would greatly diminish the natural beauty of the park and would be visible from many of the trails in the park."

A release from the commission that News 4 received at the meeting said because of the increase in traffic on Altamont Road predicted by studies of residential developments, combined with the unknown traffic associated with the other amenities Kaufmann had planned, the zoning staff recommended that the rezoning request be denied.

Despite the zoning staff recommending denial, the planning commission declined to deny or grant the rezoning request. Commission Chair Jim Barbare said a state law mandates the commission cannot hold on to a rezoning issue for more than one reading.

The commission recommended the request go to the planning and development committee of County Council. The commission also recommended the committee, which is made up of five council members, hold a public hearing to address any unresolved issues. Commission chairman Jim Barbare said if the committee doesn't hold a public hearing, the commission will hold one, if they are asked. Barbare said the commission didn't want to "rush to judgement" Wednesday, and thought pushing the issue forward in a neutral position was the fairest decision. Barbare also said the commission felt there were many unanswered questions that needed to be resolved.

Final decision on the request for rezoning will ultimately be made by the County Council.

Paris Mountain resident Jim Sheets said he didn't agree with the outcome of Wednesday's meeting.

"We've had tons of comment, the public's against it, staff's against it, the planning commission should have made a decision," Sheets said.

Kaufmann has said that if he is not permitted to develop the condominiums, he will pursue the construction of a housing subdivision on 25 acres that was already approved.

"That’s what’s already approved. I mean, it’s not a threat. It’s just the reality of the situation. We think this is a much better footprint and provides much better amenities for the people that live up there," Kaufmann said.

County officials tells News 4 that a lawsuit is pending regarding the subdivision and the people who have filed the lawsuit are requesting that decision be reviewed and that a hearing will ultimately decide that outcome.

In July, Audrey Pasin, an attorney, and other Paris Mountain residents filed a lawsuit appealing the decision.

"It is not a done deal, and the county must take that into consideration when it considers the merits of Kaufmann's rezoning proposal. Said differently, if the county were to accept Kaufmann's proposal, it should do so without reference to Altera's preliminary subdivision approval, as the pending litigation shows the approval and approval process were fraught with error," Pasin said in an emailed response to News 4.

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